CN113680586A

CN113680586A - Decorative garden fountain with loudspeaker

Info

Publication number: CN113680586A
Application number: CN202011034091.2A
Authority: CN
Inventors: 苏赫拉布·罗比·苏富
Original assignee: Alpine Corp
Current assignee: Alpine Co Ltd; Alpine Corp
Priority date: 2020-05-18
Filing date: 2020-09-27
Publication date: 2021-11-23
Also published as: US11510009B2; US20210354165A1

Abstract

A portable ornamental fountain is provided, comprising: a) a body having one or more cavities for collecting water and one or more openings configured for sound to pass from an interior of the body to an exterior of the body; b) a pump for pumping water in an upward direction from the cavity; c) a conduit for conveying water pumped by the pump; and d) a speaker for playing sound through one or more openings in the body; wherein the fountain is capable of operating with or without a speaker playing sound.

Description

Decorative garden fountain with loudspeaker

Cross-referencing

The present application claims benefit of U.S. provisional patent application No.63/026,720 filed on day 5, 18 of 2020 and U.S. provisional patent application No.63/055,883 filed on

day

7, 23 of 2020, which are incorporated herein by reference in their entirety.

Technical Field

The invention relates to a decorative garden fountain.

Background

Decorative garden fountains are often placed in gardens for aesthetics. Existing decorative garden fountains have limited functionality. In the prior art, there is a need for an ornamental fountain that is aesthetically pleasing and has additional functionality.

Disclosure of Invention

A portable decorative fountain is provided, comprising: a) a portable body having one or more cavities for collecting water and one or more openings configured for passage of sound from an interior of the body to an exterior of the body; b) a pump for pumping water in an upward direction from at least one of the one or more cavities; c) a conduit for conveying water pumped by the pump; and d) a speaker for playing sound through one or more openings in the body; wherein the fountain is capable of operating with or without a speaker playing sound. The body can have a height of 1 to 6 feet, a weight of 1 to 200kg, and a longest width from the bottom center of the housing of between 1 to 3 feet. The fountain can be a cascading fountain having a plurality of chambers. The chamber can have a lamp placed below where the water is collected. The light can be changed in response to different sounds emitted from the speaker. The speaker can be contained on the side of the fountain, relative to the lowest cavity that collects water.

The speaker can be raised less than 2 feet, facing outward. The speaker can be placed on top of the fountain. Also includes a waterproof housing for the speaker. There can be a cover for the housing having an opening, wherein the cover forms a portion of the body of the fountain and is visible from the exterior of the fountain. The housing can comprise more than two rocks, one of the more than two rocks of the housing having an opening for sound propagation.

A portable decorative fountain is provided, comprising: a) a portable body having at least two cavities configured in a cascading manner, the body having one or more openings configured for sound to pass from an interior of the body to an exterior of the body, and the body having a height of 1 foot to 6 feet, a weight of 1kg to 200kg, and a longest width from a bottom center of the housing of between 1 foot to 3 feet; b) a pump for pumping water in an upward direction from at least the cavity at the lowest level; c) a conduit for conveying water pumped by the pump; and d) a speaker for playing sound through one or more openings in the body; the fountain can operate with or without a speaker to play sound.

The lowest cavity (from the center of the cavity portion that is visible (not blocked by the rock) can define the front of the body, and the speaker is placed on the side. A waterproof housing in which the speaker is located and a cover, wherein the cover forms a portion of the body of the fountain and is visible from the exterior of the fountain.

A portable ornamental fountain is provided, comprising: a portable body having at least two cavities configured in a cascaded manner, the body having an opening; b) a pump for pumping water in an upward direction from at least the cavity at the lowest level; c) a conduit for conveying water pumped by the pump; d) a speaker; e) a waterproof case for placing the speaker inside the main body; f) a cover configured to fit over the housing and cover the opening of the body, the cover having a plurality of openings of its own, the openings of the cover configured to allow sound from the speaker to propagate from one side of the cover to another side of the cover; wherein the fountain is capable of operating with or without a speaker playing sound.

Drawings

Fig. 1 shows a cascade fountain with speakers (speakers are shown in fig. 2) on its sides.

Figure 2 shows a speaker placed on the side of the fountain of figure 1.

Figure 3 shows the internal electronics of the fountain of figure 1.

Figure 4 illustrates a side view of a fountain with speakers positioned on the sides.

Figure 5 shows a fountain with speakers placed on top of the fountain.

Fig. 6 shows a fountain with speakers having a grille.

Fig. 7 shows a waterproof housing for placing a speaker.

Fig. 8 shows a housing cover with a plurality of openings for placement over the cover of fig. 7.

Figure 9 shows a chamber (basin) with a lamp placed on the bottom of the basin collecting water.

Figure 10 shows the electronic components of the fountain.

Detailed Description

A decorative fountain 1 with a loudspeaker 4 is provided. The decorative fountain 1 is adapted to be placed in a garden. The decorative fountain 1 may have one or more components including a body/housing 28, a chamber 7 (shown in the form of a pool) for collecting water, a pump 25 and a conduit 29 for moving water upwardly from the lowermost chamber 7 by the force generated by the pump 25.

The fountain 1 may have one or more chambers 7 (basins), for example one, two, three, four or five chambers 7 for collecting water. As shown, the fountain has three larger chambers 7 and one smaller chamber. The fountain 1 may be a cascade fountain (as shown in fig. 1) in which water from one pool falls into another pool located lower down. Each cavity 7 (pool) may have a light source 12 inside, which emits light through the water in each cavity 7 (pool). The Light source 12, which may be a LED (Light Emitting Diode) lamp, may be a monochromatic lamp or a polychromatic lamp. A transparent (waterproof) window 18 may be placed over the light source 12 at the bottom of the cavity 7 (pool) or cavities.

The speakers 4 may be placed at the bottom of the fountain 1 and facing outward. The outward facing speakers 4 may be placed inside one of the plurality of artificial rocks 2 of the fountain 1. The fountain 1 may comprise two or more artificial rocks 2 on the bottom, and a grid of loudspeakers 4 is placed on one of the rocks 2 or on an opening 3 cut into the rock 2. The fountain 1 may have a housing giving the impression that there are several rocks, for example 10 to 30 rocks, one of these artificial rocks 2 becoming a loudspeaker 4.

The fountain/speaker enclosure 28 may be made of a synthetic material such as plastic. The fountain 1/speaker enclosure 28 may have a flat bottom for placing the enclosure on a flat surface. The fountain 1/speaker enclosure 28 (at the highest point) may be 1 foot to 4 feet (or 2 feet to 6 feet) tall and have a length and/or width (at the longest length) of between one foot to three feet from the center of the bottom of the enclosure. The interior of the fountain 1 may be hollow, with the rock merely representing the shape of the walls of the housing 28 and being made of plastic that looks like rock.

The housing may have a plurality of irregularly shaped openings configured to allow sound generated by the speaker 4 to travel from the interior of the housing 28 to the exterior of the housing 28. The speaker 4 may be placed in a waterproof housing 16 and sealed by a housing cover 17.

The portion (diaphragm) of the speaker 4 generating sound faces the opening of the housing. The plurality of openings 3 may be spaced apart from each other in an arrangement forming a circle. There may be from about 10 to about 20 openings 3. In one embodiment, there may optionally be a sealing ring and a speaker grille between the housing 28 and the surface of the speaker 4.

There may be an electronic access window 13 in the back or side of the housing 28 which may be removed to access the speaker 4, the connector 9 and the

wires

8 and 11. A circuit board with a processor may be placed inside the housing 28. The host processor 19 on the circuit board may be in electronic communication with a port, such as a USB port 22, which is accessible from the exterior of the housing 28 through an opening in the cover 17. There may also be a switch for turning the speaker on and off, which is accessible from the outside of the housing 28. The main processor 19 may further communicate with a processor, such as a Bluetooth (Bluetooth chip) 21, configured for wireless communication. In one embodiment, the fountain 1 may also have a battery backup, with or without solar panels, that only powers the speakers 4 independently of the pump 25.

Fig. 1 shows a cascaded garden fountain 1 with a housing 28. In the cascade fountain 1 of fig. 1, there are at least three chambers 7 (basins) that collect water. A pump 25 inside the fountain pumps water through a conduit 29 to the top of the fountain, which then pours down from one chamber 7 to the other. The fountain 1 of fig. 1 includes an outer shell 28, the outer shell 28 giving the impression of being made of a plurality of rocks of different shapes and sizes, arranged to allow for a cascading fountain with a plurality of chambers 7.

Figure 2 shows the placement of the loudspeaker inside the artificial rock 2, at the side of the fountain, with respect to the front side of the fountain through which water flows. In this embodiment, the speaker 4 is placed at a height of less than two feet. As shown, the artificial rock 2 in which the loudspeaker 4 is placed above a smaller artificial rock located on the ground. In this embodiment the loudspeaker 4 is placed at the side of the fountain with respect to a water collecting chamber 7 on the bottom of the fountain 1. The grille 6 may be placed in front of the loudspeaker 4 but behind the opening 3. The opening 3 is a part of the housing cover 17. The housing cover 17 may be incorporated into the main body to give the impression that it is part of the main body.

Fig. 3 shows the electronic components of the water fountain 1. In this figure a loudspeaker 4 is shown placed on the side of the fountain. The speaker 4 is connected to the connector 9 through a wire 10. Additional wires 11 extend to the light source 12. The light source 12 may be placed at the bottom of each cavity 7. The power cord 8 may be powered from an external energy source, typically an electrical plug. The power cord may exit the fountain through the access window 13.

Figure 4 shows a side view of the fountain 1. Shown in this figure are the speakers 4 placed on the bottom side of the fountain 1 and the wiring from the speakers 4.

Figure 5 shows a fountain 5 with a loudspeaker 4 at the top of the fountain 5. The fountain 5 may be made of a number of different sizes of rock, such as having the appearance of 10-30 artificial rocks, and the speakers 4 are placed inside the artificial rocks all the way to the top of the fountain 5.

Figure 6 shows a fountain 10 which is identical to the fountain 1 except that it uses a grating 15 instead of openings 3 in the rock.

Fig. 7 shows a watertight housing 16. The loudspeaker 4 is placed inside a watertight housing 16, the watertight housing 16 being placed inside the artificial rock of the fountain 1.

Fig. 8 shows a housing cover 17 placed on the housing 16 accommodating the loudspeaker 4. The housing cover 17 has a plurality of openings 3 and forms an outer portion of the fountain housing 28. The housing cover 17 may be painted the same as the rest of the fountain.

Fig. 9 shows the chamber 7 (basin) of the fountain 1 that collects water. The lamp 12 may be placed under a transparent window 18 on the bottom of each cavity. Alternatively, the lamp 12 may be waterproof and require no window.

Fig. 10 shows the electronic components of the fountain, such as the speaker 4, a CPU (Central Processing Unit) 19, a memory 20, a bluetooth chip 21, the light source 12, a power management Unit 23, a USB interface 22, a pump 25 and a power exchanger 26.

The CPU (central processing unit) 19 may be a microcontroller with an internal memory 20. The CPU 19 may communicate with the speaker through a driver. The CPU 19 may also communicate with a power management unit 23 that can control and monitor the current. The CPU 19 may also communicate with a bluetooth chip 21 configured for wireless communication with a user's smart phone or other electronic device. The user will formulate a wireless communication protocol, such as through bluetooth chip 21, to pair the speaker with the user's electronic device, e.g., a mobile or smart phone, tablet, or dedicated music player. The user may then play the content (e.g., song) through the speaker. After receiving the wireless signal, the speaker system forms a connection (pair) with the user's device. Speaker 4 then receives audio content from the user's device. The audio content may be played as a live stream (with minimal buffering as required) or may be stored in memory 20 and played over time.

Alternatively, a wired connection may be made using a port (e.g., USB port 22) to play audio content (songs) and/or charge the user's electronic device. Audio content may be uploaded from a storage device, such as a flash drive, into the memory of the speaker and played on the speaker 4 at an overrun time.

The lights 12 may be synchronized with sound from the speaker 4 by using, for example, a sound effect sensor 24. The lamp 12 may change colour and/or lumen/intensity depending on the characteristics of the sound produced by the loudspeaker 4.

Reference numerals

1. Fountain

2. Rock

3. Opening of the container

4. Loudspeaker

5. Fountain with loudspeaker on top

6. Grid

7. Cavity body

8. Power line

9. Terminal box

10. Fountain with grille loudspeaker

11. Electrical wire to LED lamp

12. Light source (LED in general)

13. Access window

15. Grid

16. Waterproof casing

17. Shell cover

18. Transparent window

19.CPU

20. Memory device

21. Bluetooth

USB interface

23. Power Management Unit (PMU)

24. Sound effect sensor

25. Pump and method of operating the same

26. Power supply exchanger

27. Synchronization

28. Main body/outer shell

29. Catheter tube

Claims

1. A portable decorative fountain, comprising:

a) a portable body having one or more cavities for collecting water and one or more openings configured for passage of sound from an interior of the body to an exterior of the body;

b) a pump for pumping water in an upward direction from at least one of the one or more cavities;

c) a conduit for conveying water pumped by the pump; and

d) a speaker for playing sound through one or more openings in the body;

wherein the fountain is capable of operating with or without a speaker playing sound.

2. The portable decorative fountain of claim 1, wherein the body has a height of 1 to 6 feet, a weight of 1 to 200kg, and a longest width from 1 to 3 feet from a bottom center of the housing.

3. The portable decorative fountain of claim 1, wherein the fountain is a cascading fountain having a plurality of cavities.

4. The portable decorative fountain of claim 3, wherein at least one of the one or more cavities has a light positioned below where water is collected.

5. The portable decorative fountain of claim 4, wherein the lights change in response to different sounds emitted from the speaker.

6. The portable decorative fountain of claim 1, wherein the speakers are contained on the sides of the fountain relative to the lowermost cavity that collects water.

7. The portable decorative fountain of claim 1, wherein the speaker is raised less than 2 feet from the ground, facing outward.

8. The portable decorative fountain of claim 1, wherein the speaker is positioned at a top of the fountain.

9. The portable decorative fountain of claim 1, further comprising a waterproof housing in which the speaker is disposed.

10. The portable decorative fountain of claim 9, further comprising a cover for the housing having an opening, wherein the cover forms a portion of the body of the fountain and is visible from an exterior of the fountain.

11. The portable decorative fountain of claim 1, wherein the housing includes two or more rocks, one of the two or more rocks of the housing having an opening for sound propagation.

12. A portable decorative fountain, comprising:

a) a portable body having at least two cavities configured in a cascading manner, the body having one or more openings configured for sound to pass from an interior of the body to an exterior of the body, wherein the body has a height of 1 foot to 6 feet, a weight of 1kg to 200kg, and a longest width from a bottom center of the housing of between 1 foot to 3 feet;

b) a pump for pumping water in an upward direction from at least the cavity at the lowest level;

c) a conduit for conveying water pumped by the pump; and

d) a speaker for playing sound through one or more openings in the body;

the fountain can operate with or without a speaker to play sound.

13. The portable decorative fountain of claim 12, wherein the lowermost chamber defines a front of the body and the speakers are positioned on the sides.

14. The portable decorative fountain of claim 12, further comprising a waterproof housing in which the speaker is housed and a cover, wherein the cover forms a portion of the body of the fountain and is visible from outside the fountain.

15. A portable decorative fountain, comprising:

a) a portable body having at least two cavities configured in a cascaded manner, the body having an opening;

b) a pump for pumping water in an upward direction from at least the cavity located at the lowest level;

c) a conduit for conveying water pumped by the pump;

d) a speaker;

e) a waterproof case for placing the speaker inside the main body; and

f) a cover configured to fit over the housing and cover the opening of the body, the cover having a plurality of openings of its own, the openings of the cover configured to allow sound from the speaker to propagate from one side of the cover to another side of the cover;